“A child is not a tourist attraction”: it was recalled by ECPAT Europe (Italy-Germany-Holland-Austria-Estonia), the network against sex tourism to the detriment of minors, through the appeal launched today by means of a spot to be broadcast by lots of Italian TVs and radios. “There are many reasons for making a journey to the Dominican Republic, Kenya, Costa Rica, South Africa, India, Philippines – says actor Arnoldo Foà in the spot -. But for one of them one should never leave: looking for sex with minors”. The spot is part of a project financed by the European Commission to defend childhood in some countries with high exploitation risks. The project, ending in 2011, includes ongoing training initiatives for students of tourism technical institutes, as well as meetings with institutions and the tourism industry. Moreover, remote online training of tour operators is also scheduled.
ECPAT recalls that, in Costa Rica, out of 100 children interviewed in the capital, San José, 38% had a foreigner as latest customer. In 2002, another survey made in Costa Rica pointed out that the vast majority of sex tourists with minors were men, about 40 years old, and coming from the US, Italy, Canada and Germany. The favourite destinations of Italians include also the Dominican Republic, Kenya, Thailand, and Brazil. More information at www.viaggidanonfare.org